FAQ

Question asked by parents about congenital deformities repair:

Q. What are the causes of cleft lip or palate?

A.Genetics and
environmental factors are both considered instrumental in causing clefts. Cleft
parents are known to be predisposed having cleft children. But the main cause is
attributed to the deficiency of Folic Acid during pregnancy. The other causes
are radiation, pollution, nutritional deficienct, psychologically disturbed
pregnant women, trauma, alcohol consumption, smoking, tobacco chewing during
pregnancy. The development of cleft is not influences by x- rays, medicine,
illness, injuries etc.

Q. Is there a possibility of giving birth to another cleft child?

A.Genetics and
environmental factors are both considered instrumental in causing clefts. Cleft
parents are known to be predisposed having cleft children. But the main cause is
attributed to the deficiency of Folic Acid during pregnancy. The other causes
are radiation, pollution, nutritional deficienct, psychologically disturbed
pregnant women, trauma, alcohol consumption, smoking, tobacco chewing during
pregnancy. The development of cleft is not influences by x- rays, medicine,
illness, injuries etc.

Q. Is a cleft lip always associated with cleft palate?

A.Cleft lip is not
always associated with cleft palate.

Q. What can be done for my child born with a cleft?

A.Surgical repair
of the cleft can be successfully done restoring appearance and function to
normal. Most of the babies born with cleft have nasal deformity, so long with
cleft surgery, nose correction is also done. Many of our patients have gpt
excellent results.

Q. When is the surgery done in the child?

Age

Procedure performed

3-4 months

cleft lip repair

6-9 months

palate repair

3 yrs

pharyngoplasty and speech therapy

5 yrs

BMP

12 yrs

jaw and teeth repair

15 yrs

rhinoplasty

Q. Why do cleft lip and palate require many surgeries? Is it not enough
to do once?

A.Its is not enough
as the doctor has to decide for the child as the functional treatment always
precedes the esthetic correction and has to be constantly revised as the child
grows.

Q. Will my child look normal after surgery?

A.Not immediately
after surgery because of the swelling in the lip region and the scar appears
red. The scar takes about 6 - 12 months to disappear to give a pleasing look

Q. How many days should my child be in the hospital after surgery?

A.A. The child is
hospitalized for maximum of 2 - 3 days.

Q. Can parents stay along with the child in the hospital?

A.Parents can stay
and take care of the child in the hospital. The details about the stay can be
cleared from the hospital staffs.

Q. How should I feed my child before surgery?

A.. If the child’s
lip is incompletely split and the palate is intact, breast feeding or nursing
bottle can be used. Regarding feeding please as the the doctor in charge as the
child is always placed under 6 hour fasting prior to surgery.

Q. How will my child feel about having cleft?

A.Insecurity in
infants is due to parents’ depression, child’s lethargy and irritability. Social
support, self-confidence and trust might prove advantageous. So parents should
have frank discussion about the cleft and should give proper guidance and
encouragement

Q. Whom should I ask concerning the cleft?

A.Team of
specialists- plastic surgeon, orthodontist, pedodontist, speech therapist,
nurses work together. So you can contact any of these members or Balaji‘s
Craniofacial center regarding the cleft.

Q. Will my child speak like normal child?

A.Child speaks very
well after the surgical repair of the cleft. The improvement in the speech
depends on the co-operation and encouragement shown to the child.

Q. How the palate help in speech?

A.Yes. The palates
help in speech so the palatal repair has to be done for the proper speech.

Q. Will the nasal twang and fluid that escapes out of the nose stop
after the treatment?

A.It cannot be
estimated immediately because palatal repair takes time for healing. Only when
the muscles become flexible the air can escape through the nose and mouth
equally enabling the speech. The child has to be encouraged to talk.

Q. What should I do to make my child speak well after surgery?

A.You should always
repeatedly encourage your child to speak. Child should be taught first a few
words then small sentences and gradually trained.

Q. What should I do to make my cleft child speak before surgery?

A.You should talk,
play and laugh. An attempt should be made to produce sounds clearly

Q. When should I meet speech therapist?

A.Not all the
children need speech therapist. Only for few children speech therapy becomes
necessary and speech therapist has to be contacted at 2-3 years of age.